Most Bollywood stars won't be in Mumbai on election day

With election day fast approaching, we find out who in Bollywood will be in the city to cast their vote

With the Lok Sabha elections less than a month away, many stars have been appealing to the public to step out and vote. Be it on social media or at social events, several celebrities have been talking about social evils and political apathy. Interestingly though, most stars will not even be in Mumbai on voting day as it clashes with an awards function that is being held in Florida, USA.

So while on one hand, a record number of Bollywood personalities are contesting elections this year — including the likes of Hema Malini, Kirron Kher, Gul Panag, Nagma and Jaaved Jaaferi — a legion of celebs from the industry will be far away from ground zero.

It seems that the awards function had announced its dates much before the election dates were out and as a result, most celebs had chalked out their itineraries accordingly. Then there are some who will be busy shooting outside Mumbai and will thus not be able to vote.

hitlist gives you the lowdown on who is likely to get ink on their finger.

Keeping their date with elections

Aamir Khan: The actor will ensure that he is in the city on election day. He asked people to cast their vote on the finale of his show Satyamev Jayate, and it is a given that the actor will exercise his right to vote.

Amitabh Bachchan: Big B and his entire family, including wife Jaya, son Abhishek, and daughter-in-law Aishwarya Rai, never fail to cast their vote. This year too, they plan to do so.

Ranbir Kapoor: The actor is shooting for his film, Bombay Velvet, and he is not expected to fly out of Mumbai as of now. It is being said that after finishing his shoot, he will cast his vote.

Riteish Deshmukh: Hailing from a political family, the actor is only too aware of the importance of voting. He will be voting on April 17 from his native place, Latur, where his elder brother Amit is contesting elections. He will then fly out of town the same night.

Sonam Kapoor: The actress confirms that not only will she be in the city on election day, but she will also cast her vote.

Missing in Action

Salman Khan: The actor has been campaigning — although indirectly — for his friend, Priya Dutt, for quite some time now. Some time back, he drew flak for being seen with BJP’s Narendra Modi during the promotions for his film, Jai Ho. Now it turns out that he will not be in the country on election day. He will be in Poland for a film shoot.

Deepika Padukone: The actress is flying to US to take part in an award ceremony, which is taking place on April 26. Since she is likely to perform at the function, she will be reaching the venue a few days before the gala. Owing to this, she won’t be in Mumbai on election day.

Priyanka Chopra: Priyanka has been shooting for her film in Manali and is expected to return soon to Mumbai. But she too has been invited to the awards function in the US and is thus likely to note vote this year.

Kareena Kapoor – Saif Ali Khan: The couple won’t be shooting for their films on election day, but they are taking part in the said award ceremony in the US.

Farhan Akhtar: Much like Javed Akhtar and Shabana Azmi, Farhan has never hesitated to support a social cause, nor does he shy away from expressing his opinion on any issue. However, he is likely to be out of country on voting day.

Vivek Oberoi: Vivek has been campaigning for his mother-in-law, Nandini Alva, who is contesting elections from Bangalore Central for Janata Dal Secular. But he won’t be in India on election day as he is likely to fly to US for the same awards function.

Sonakshi Sinha: The actress has already made it clear that she won’t be campaigning for her father Shatrughan Sinha, who is contesting elections in a Patna constituency. But now it looks like Sona, who is expected to win an award in the US, won’t even be in town to cast her vote. Other actors and actresses who are travelling to the US and may thus miss out on their right to vote include Parineeti Chopra, Madhuri Dixit-Nene, Shahid Kapoor, Bipasha Basu, Dia Mirza, Neil Nitin Mukesh and Vaani Kapoor.

Work calling

Ayushmann Khurrana: The actor will be in Hrishikesh on election day, as he is shooting for his upcoming film, Dum Laga Ke Haisha.

Arjun Kapoor: The actor will be in India during elections but since he is busy promoting his upcoming film, 2 States, he won’t be in Mumbai then. To add to it, he is yet to finish shooting for the film, Tevar, in North India.

Anushka Sharma: The actress is in Jodhpur for one and half months to shoot for her debut production, NH 10. This means that she will have come down to Mumbai to just cast her vote or wait another five years.